Chapter Twenty-Six (Julian)
It felt like this rehearsal was never going to end.
We stood there for what felt like two hours, and it was probably mostly my fault. They wanted me to remember everything and I couldn't even concentrate on it. Every time I forgot something, Wulf would smack me or insult me. The priest who was doing our wedding was forced to do this. I could tell by the way he stumbled and tripped over words at first, because he was scared.
They were threatening him into this too. I could tell he was stunned to see vampires in a church. He probably thought we'd burn up in the doorway or something cheesy, but what we didn't believe in didn't hurt us, so here we were, standing at the alter with a terrified priest.
Orion, Ikuto and Declan just sat around in the pews. Occasionally, Orion would get up to walk around, twirling a knife in his hands and peering out the windows. Ikuto fell asleep halfway through and Declan just kept on staring straight ahead like a robot. I couldn't tell what annoyed me more. Orion manhandling me or Declan doing nothing.
"Let's take a break," Wulf snapped at last, cutting the priest off, who nodded shakily, "Orion, go with the father to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." Orion sighed wistfully, but approached the priest anyway, taking him by the elbow.
"Come on, father, let's leave the happy couple alone." He told the trembling man, then dragged him off into the back of the church, slamming a door shut behind them. I watched them go, feeling sorry for the old guy. He was just an innocent church man that got dragged into this mess, and I had a feeling that Orion was going to kill him after the wedding to avoid word getting out about what they were planning anyway.
"You're going to love your dress," Wulf was saying when I tuned back in, "I had it especially tailored for you, so even the corset should fit. It'll be better than the first dress I put you in. Oh, I also bought you a new pair of shoes, fishnets, and a very interesting choker a friend of mine from New York highly recommended. It's quite expensive, mind you. Possibly over two grand for just your outfit alone, but it's nothing I'm not willing to pay." I said nothing to that, just grimaced and looked away.
Fantastic. I'll live the rest of my life as some kind of dress up doll and once he was finished, he'd probably stuff my corpse at the back of his closet and move onto someone else.
"I'm also going to be calling a friend of mine," Wulf went on, as if he really couldn't care less about my opinion, on anything, "He should be able to get us some fine blood to drink after. But we won't be staying in Detroit much longer."
"Huh?" I looked at him, feeling my stomach shrink. Wulf gave me a droll stare, then reached out and pinched my cheek hard enough to make it hurt.
"Don't say huh. It's impolite. Say what."
"What?"
"Very good."
"No, I mean, what do you mean we're not staying in Detroit?"
"I already told you," Wulf said impatiently, "We're taking the next flight back to New York. I don't want to stay in this state any longer than I have to. You Michiganians have this weird accent. It's like your caught between North and South." I scowled. What accent? I had never noticed it. I noticed Wulf's, but since when did I have my own? I only thought there was a Southern accent in the US. I had a feeling my teachers would be incredibly disappointed in me.
"That's not my fault," I answered heatedly, "And I don't want to go to New York. I like Michigan."
"And I don't. So we're going to New York."
"How come you get to make all the decisions? Why can't I choose something?" I demanded. Wulf rolled his eyes, then reached out and grabbed me by the back of my neck, making me wince as he pulled me up against him. He smirked, tilting my head up so he could hold my jaw, his other arm around my waist now.
"I'll let you decide how you want me to take you the night we consumate our marriage." He answered, making me cringe in disgust as he leaned down, nuzzling my ear and kissing his way down my throat. I wanted to push him away or dig my nails into his skin, but the thought barely crossed my mind when the sound of a gunshot went off. My eyes flew open and Wulf instantly froze, then roughly let go of me, looking up. Ikuto and Declan both shot to their feet in alarm.
"What the hell was that?" Wulf demanded after a moment, snapping his head to look at Ikuto, who narrowed his eyes.
"I don't know, but I smell blood." He answered bitterly. I shrugged, rubbing my arm where Wulf had manhandled me.
"It's Detroit. Hearing a gunshot here is like hearing Paul McCartney's Wondeful Christmas Time on the radio during the holidays." I grumbled, then winced when Wulf smacked me in the chest, then held a finger to his lips. I remained silent, though, as we listened to the sound of another gunshot going off.
Now I was nervous. Who was it? It sounded like it was coming from inside the church. Was it Adam and the others? The thought made me sick to my stomach.
Seconds later, the door that Orion disappeared through, flew open and in came Orion, quickly slamming the door shut and locking it behind him. He whirled around to face us, his expression annoyed.
"Your bride's calvary has arrived. And they shot the priest." He added, reaching into his jacket to take out the knife from earlier. Wulf glared at him in disbelief.
"Why?" He demanded. Orion grinned sheepishly.
"Actually, that part was my fault, the human shot at me, so I used to the priest as a shield. Sorry, gonna have to find a new one." He answered. Wulf threw his hands in the air in exasperation. I grimaced, rubbing my arms as I watched Wulf silently fume over the mess. Orion seemed to be preparing to kill and Ikuto was ordering Declan to keep an eye out.
"We should leave," Wulf said at last, making Orion and Ikuto frown at him, "I don't want to waste my time or attract attention."
"And we made a deal," I protested angrily, making him glare at me, "You promised you wouldn't hurt them if I did what you said." Wulf said nothing to that. He didn't really have time because the door that Orion had come out of flew open and Xed came in first, making my eyes widen.
"Xed!" I exclaimed. While it was great to see him, I was nervous as hell. If he was here, who else was here? Was Newell here? If he was here, was the rest of my family? My heart was pounding in my chest and it only got worse when Ikuto ordered Calhoun to attack Xed, who kicked Calhoun hard in the stomach before stepping back. Calhoun lost his breath for a second, gasping before he lunged at Xed and slammed him into a wall. The fact that Calhoun could move Xed of all people meant Calhoun was a lot stronger than he looked, and a lot more dangerous.
"Stop," I protested, then whirled to face Wulf, "Stop! You promised you wouldn't hurt them! Xed is my friend!"
"He's the one who came uninvited, kid." Orion replied with a careless shrug. I glared at him and opened my mouth to speak again when I heard someone shout my name. My stomach plummeted as I whipped around to see my mom and dad come through the doors. Wulf cursed under his breath and Orion sighed wearily, twirling the knife into his fist and taking a step forward, but I got in front of him and pushed on his chest.
"Leave them alone! You promised!" I insisted, but Wulf caught me by the elbow and whipped me away from Orion, who jerked on the lapels of his jacket, casting me a wicked smirk.
"I promised nothing; Wulf did." He answered, then went to go after my parents, but my dad was already standing by Orion and grabbing him by the wrist. I watched, surprised as he twisted Orion's wrist with a sickening crack so the knife fell to the floor. Orion hissed, baring his fangs at my father, but my father flipped him onto his back on the floor. My father glared down at him.
"Do not ever touch my son." He ordered, making Orion wince. I looked up at my dad in surprise, opening my mouth to compliment him when Wulf tore me back behind him, putting a death grip on my wrist. I winced as Wulf glared at my father.
"You don't know what you're doing, Kornelius. If you take my bride, I'm going to kill everyone." He threatened darkly, making me hesitate my struggles. A shiver went up my spine as I remembered the way they described the security that had set on the place. I looked at my father, who clenched his fists as he debated how to attack Wulf. My mother took up position beside him, giving Wulf the scariest look I'd ever seen on her tear stained face.
"Get your hands off my son, Wulf, or I'll rip your heart out with my teeth. If you think I'm joking, you should see what I did to your little bodyguard buddies outside." She sneered, making Wulf stiffen. My heart jumped and for a second, I had a little hope that maybe, just maybe I could get out of here, but Orion moved quickly and flipped himself back onto his feet before grabbing my father and trying to flip him onto the floor. Lysander bolted in out of nowhere and caught Orion in the chest with a scissor kick that had Orion stumbling back.
"I don't think so." Wulf muttered, then started to back up with me toward the door, but my mother moved quickly and grabbed Wulf by the throat, digging her nails into his skin. Wulf made a choking noise, letting go of me to grab at her wrist. He bared his fangs, then twisted her hand off his throat before backhanding her hard.
Instinct grabbed a hold of me and I lunged at Wulf, grabbing his arm and sinking my fangs down into his wrist. Wulf snarled and swung his arm back, slamming me into one of the pews. I yelped, letting my fangs rip through his skin and sending blood splattering into my face. I slammed into the pew just as my mother recovered and lunged at Wulf again, hissing angrily.
I wiped my hand across the back of my mouth just in time for the front doors of the church to open and three of Wulf's men came in. My eyes widened and I ducked behind one of the pews, keeping low as they ran down the aisle toward the fighting. I leapt out at the last one to pass, catching him around the throat. I twisted his head with a hard jerk and heard his neck snap. He hit the floor like a sack of potatoes, making a low squeak.
The other two whirled on me, one of them whipping out a knife.
"Don't you dare hurt him or I'll have your heads!" Wulf shouted just before my mother landed a punch into his jaw before she spat at him, then slammed him into the floor. I winced, then snapped my head to see the one with the knife lunging at me anyway. I leapt back and ducked a long swipe with the knife and popped back up, grabbing his arm and whirling around against his chest, twisting his arm sharply to the side until there was a crack and one of his bones tore through his skin and the sleeve of his jacket. He howled, dropping the knife and collapsing to his knees.
The next Zephyra member came at me quickly, grabbing me up around the waist and intending to smash me down onto a pew, but I sank my nails into his throat and bared my fangs as I wrenched my hands deep into his throat. Blood gushed past my fingers, spurting and squirting everywhere, splattering on my face as I pulled hard and managed to rip his throat open.
I gasped as he fell to the floor, choking and gurgling. I squirmed away from him and looked up just as the other Zephyra member with the busted arm punched me so hard I hit the floor on my hands and knees. I panted hard, then yelped as he went to stab me with a knife, but I crawled under one of the pews, then winced as he jammed the knife right through the wood, splintering it until the tip touched my cheek, slicing it open just a hair.
I rolled out from underneath quickly as he tried to retrieve his knife to no avail. He gave up and whirled around to kick me in the face, but I ducked back against the back of a pew before flinging my foot up and kicking him hard in the face and sending him tumbling over the edge of the pew.
I whirled around in time to hear a gut wrenching scream. My eyes widened to see Orion plunge his knife into my father's stomach. He stumbled back off of Orion's knife and fell against Lysander, who caught him with trembling arms. I'd never seen Lysander get emotional before. Tears welled up in his eyes and he fell to his knees, hugging my father tightly against him.
Panic swelled inside me and I ran for Orion, who was advancing toward them and taking advantage of the situation, but Wulf darted out of nowhere and caught me up around the waist, making me gasp in surprise.
"Kill her!" Wulf barked at Orion, who blinked and whirled around to face my mother, who was coming after Wulf, his bloodied fangs bared hatefully. The right side of her face was bruised and her knuckles were bleeding, but she still kept going and a bad feeling wrenched at my gut.
"No! No! Mom, stop!" I shouted, but my voice sounded so hoarse and far away, and it was like she couldn't hear me, because she was still going after Wulf. Orion moved quickly in front of her, dropping his bloodied knife to the church floor with a clatter. He reeled one hand back, using the other to grab her by the shoulders before he brought his other hand forward, plunging it straight into her stomach.
"Nooo!"
Blood gushed from her back where Orion's hand opened to reveal a smashed handful of innards that fell to the floor in bloody chunks. My mother froze, her eyes wide and staring at Orion in shock as he stared back at her, expressionless. She choked, blood bubbling past her lips and running down her chin. Orion withdrew his hand sharply and she crumpled to the floor.
"Vanessa!" My father fought to get away from Lysander, who was desperately trying to hold onto him and help him stand, but they were both struggling with their injuries. My heart pounded desperately in my throat as I watched my mother choke for air.
"No! No! Let me go! Put me down! Stop! You promised," I screamed, kicking and thrashing to get away from Wulf, who was trying to make his way toward the back of the church where the door was, "You promised you wouldn't hurt them! Let me go! Mom!"
"Shut up, you little ingrate! Orion, finish them! Ikuto, come with me!" Wulf snarled, struggling to keep a hold on me as he stepped past Lysander, who shot him a filthy glare and started to get up, but Orion caught him around the waist and flung him back into the ground. Lysander gasped, his head cracking against the marble alter before his eyes fluttered shut and he was unconscious-- at least, I hoped he was unconscious instead of something worse.
My heart was racing, though, and I was desperately trying to escape Wulf's grasp. My mother was still choking for air, but blood kept pouring away from her. My father was so close, so close to her, ready to feed her blood, but Orion caught him by the back of the neck and flung him clear across the room, slamming into the wall, right on an unlit candle holder. He gasped, eyes widening as the iron candleholder plunged through his side before he slumped off and onto the floor.
"No! No! Stop! Stop hurting them! Stop!" I cried, gasping for air as I fought the tears that were blurring my vision. I managed to bring my elbow back into Wulf's head and he hissed, letting go of me to grab at his head. I scrambled off the floor, ducking Wulf's grasp and Orion's, dodging past Ikuto as I ran to my mother first.
"Mom! Mom!" I gasped, falling to my knees besidde her. She looked up as if surprised to see me, her eyes blinking rapidly.
"J-Julian? Oh, my baby..." She breathed, reaching a bloody hand up to touch my cheek. A sob choked me, forming a lump in my throat as I placed my hand over hers, trying to keep my eyes off the gaping bloody hole where her stomach used to be. Even if she got blood now, she wouldn't have a way to process it or heal herself. She was missing pieces and while we could hear near fatal injuries, we couldn't regenerate body parts or organs.
"Mom, I'm sorry," I choked, tears streaming down my face, "I'm so, so sorry."
"What're you apologizing for," She asked hoarsely, "Don't waste your time with me. Get out."
"No! Mom, please don't," I stopped to release the lump in my throat, letting out a hoarse sob as I squeezed my eyes shut for a second to reopen them and look down her, "Mom, please--"
"I love you, Julian," She panted, her blue eyes darkening and face paling rapidly, "D-Don't forget... the cake... Happy... birth..."
"Come here, you brat." Orion caught me around the waist, making me scream and grasp out desperately at my mother, who wasn't moving anymore. I squirmed and writhed, clawing at Orion before he shoved me back at Wulf, who glanced at Ikuto. Ikuto was too busy watching Calhoun kick the crap out of Xed to care about what was going on.
"Stop, stop!" I cried, trying to push away Wulf's hands as Orion passed us to go to the door, grabbing Ikuto on his way.
"You promised," I screamed, pulling at Wulf's arm that went around my waist, "You promised you wouldn't hurt her!"
"I did nothing," Wulf snarled at me, giving me a violent shake that rattled everything in my head and momentarily stunned me, "This is your fault, you impudent little brat. Let's go before there's anyone else." He fought to pull me toward the door and I still kicked and screamed.
"Noooo! Mooom! Mommy, please! Please! No, let me go! Let me go! Mom! Dad! Please, stop!"
"Julian!"
Adam's voice cut through my skull like a razor blade and I froze for an instant before whipping around to see him coming through the back doors of the church, holding a gun in his hand. My eyes widened as I stared at it, then stared at Adam, who looked shocked at everything that was going on before he raised the gun.
"Wait, Adam!" I cried, pushing at Wulf's arm. Wulf took a step back and moved quickly, reaching out and grabbing Ikuto, who had been standing nearby. Ikuto only managed a gasp before Adam fired the gun and the bullet shot right past my ear and into Ikuto's throat. Ikuto choked for a second and went to touch the black hole in his throat, but he didn't even get a chance to do that because he dropped dead to the floor. My eyes widened and I snapped my head to look at Adam, who winced and started to take a step forward when I saw a flash of blonde behind him.
"NO! Adam!" Wulf caught my wrist and tore me back just as Orion came up behind Adam, reeling his hand back and bringing it forward.
A sickening wet crack tore through the church and blood splattered in my face. I froze, my breath catching in my throat and I swore my heart stopped.
Adam stood there, silent as Orion's hand stuck out the front of his chest. Blood gushed heavily down his chest, coating his clothes and forming a thick puddle on the floor. He looked confused for a second before his eyes widened. He choked, then coughed as blood poured past his lips. He dropped the gun that clattered to the ground.
"A-Adam." I managed.
No, this couldn't be happening.
This wasn't happening.
I could barely comprehend what was happening as I kept my eyes locked with Adam's. I could slowly see the light dying in his eyes, one of them glistening with unshed tears. Adam was crying? But he never cried. He never had a reason to cry. He always said crying was stupid.
"Julian..." His words were gurgled and choked before Orion ripped his hand from Adam's chest and Adam fell to his knees, trying to suck in air, but both his lungs were punctured and blood was bubbling from his wounds.
My breathing came back suddenly and I was hyperventilating as I reached out to Adam's hand that was reaching out for mine, but Wulf caught me around the waist and tore me back. I screamed.
"No! Nooo! Adam!" I tried to pull away and almost managed to make it, but Orion stepped out in front of me and caught me around the waist, heaving me over his shoulder. I cried out and slammed my fists into his back, but it didn't do anything. All I could do was watch as Adam breathed a final sigh and hit the floor, blood pooling around him.
In fact, the whole church was bathed in blood.
The color red was everywhere. On the floors, on the walls, on the alter, on the pews.
My mother's body lay to the right in utter silence, her eyes still open and staring into nothingness. To the left was my father's body, as silent as the grave. Lysander was just a few feet away, his chest not even rising or falling. And Adam laid in the middle beside the alter, dead.
Calhoun had put Xed down and he was lying slumped against the wall, unmoving for the first time since I'd met him. Calhoun was heavily damaged, blood gushing from where his arm had been torn off. He stumbled and tried to keep up with us, stepping over Ikuto's body and looking surprisingly relieved to see the man dead, but then he collapsed to his knees and gave up trying to keep up with us as he passed out in the middle of the aisle.
I couldn't even hear my sobs or screams anymore as we made our way out of the church, the doors closing on the massacre inside. How could they just leave them like that?! What if someone found them? What if they were still alive somehow, someway?
Wulf led the way to the limo and threw open the door, grabbing me from Orion, but I couldn't even find the strength to fight anymore. I was too busy choking on tears as Wulf shoved me inside so I fell against the window on the other side of the limo. I looked up to dart out of the limo, then froze to see Giorgos sitting across from me in a clean black suit. At his feet, Newell was laying on his side, a blood gash in his temple, his hands firmly tied behind his back. His eyes were closed and I couldn't tell if he was dead or alive because he wasn't moving.
"Oh, cool," Orion exclaimed as he climbed into the car after Wulf, "You got the little brat! Where'd you find him?" Giorgos passed him a blank stare, sitting with one leg folded over the other.
"He was waiting a block down, probably for the rescue team. He can't do much without his merman or Vladimir with him. Speaking of which, you took care of them, yes?" He asked. Orion blinked, looking confused, probably at the aura that surrounded his father like a thick, threatening cloud, then a frown worked itself onto his face.
"Yes. They're all dead. Ikuto and Calhoun are also dead." He replied in a monotone. Giorgos nodded his approval, then turned his head to stare out the window at the church.
"What a pity that you'll have to find a new church, Wulf. I rather liked this one." He said, turning to face Wulf, who sat stiffly beside me. He didn't look as pleased as Orion did with the work inside, but that didn't mean I was going to go easy on him.
"I won't marry you," I choked at last, making everyone look at me, Wulf's glare murderous, "You promised you wouldn't hurt them if I did, but you hurt them anyway, so fuck you and fuck your proposal." Wulf ground his teeth together before he grabbed a handful of my hair, making me hiss in pain as he drew me close, his eyes narrowed.
"What does it matter anyway? You have nowhere to go back to. Your family is dead, your friends are dead, and even your beloved human. You have no choice." He sneered.
For some reason, hearing that out loud felt like the final blow.
I felt like he'd kicked me in the stomach and I stopped crying, stopped moving, stopped protesting. I let Wulf shove me into the door before he looked away in disgust, folding his arms over his chest. I just sat there silently, staring at the floor.
He was right.
There was nothing else.
My mom was dead. My dad was dead. My uncle, Xed, Calhoun... Adam.
They were all dead.
What about Alex and Vladimir? Had they come too? Were they also dead? Hunter? Amber? Mary-Kay? Was there really no one left? Did they really kill everyone? Was I really alone?
That's what it felt like. I felt like I was trapped in a tiny box and I couldn't move my arms or legs. My chest felt tight, my body achy. I felt exhausted. I just wanted to go to bed and curl up and die. I didn't want to be here.
I didn't want to be alone...